AirAsia X to restart flights to london via new Bahrain hub
AirAsia X will relaunch services connecting Kuala Lumpur with London Gatwick through a new hub in Bahrain, a route that restores the long‑haul low‑cost carrier’s presence in the UK after more than a decade away. The daily service is scheduled to begin on June 26, 2025 (ET) and will be operated with Airbus A330‑300 aircraft.
New Bahrain hub links Kuala Lumpur and Gatwick
The planned routing—Kuala Lumpur to Manama then on to London Gatwick—forms part of a broader network strategy that places Bahrain at the centre of the carrier’s Middle East operations. The move follows a memorandum of understanding signed between the parent group and Bahrain’s transport authorities to build a regional base that can support connections between Asia, the Middle East and Europe.
The relaunch to London marks a significant step in the airline’s post‑pandemic rebuild and its impending integration with the wider group network. The Manama stop gives the carrier technical and commercial flexibility: it can operate as a transit point for passengers bound for Europe while also exploring rights that could enable more direct services out of the Gulf if regulatory approvals are secured.
Fleet, frequency and network ambitions
Service will begin with daily flights using the A330‑300, a workhorse for medium‑ and long‑haul low‑cost operations. The carrier has laid out a multi‑year growth plan that pairs an expanding fleet with a push into new markets sourced from its Asian hubs. Management has highlighted a secured order book that supports those ambitions, while also stressing disciplined growth after the challenges of recent years in aviation.
Under the plan linked to the Bahrain hub, the group intends to launch direct connections to Bahrain from Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines over the next five years, with a target of operating up to 25 daily flights through Bahrain by 2030. Over the medium term, the carrier expects to carry in excess of 20 million passengers between Manama and its Asian bases over five years if load factors and demand trajectories hold.
Bo Lingam, Group CEO of the long‑haul carrier, said: “This milestone reflects the broader transformation of AAX into a truly globally connected airline. We navigated one of the most challenging periods in aviation history and emerged from the pandemic stronger and more focused. Now, we are rebuilding with discipline—backed by a secured orderbook of 374 aircraft and counting, as well as a comprehensive five‑year growth plan that will see us steadily cementing our footprint across the regions. Bahrain fits squarely into our long‑term network blueprint to link ASEAN and Asia to the world. ”
Strategic implications and next steps
Positioning Bahrain as a regional base allows the carrier to bridge time‑zone and market gaps between Southeast Asia and Europe while tapping connecting traffic from the Middle East and beyond. The memorandum outlines potential steps to establish a local air operator’s certificate, a move that would grant the airline more operational freedom to fly directly from the Gulf to European, African and other markets without routing through its original Southeast Asian base.
Execution will depend on regulatory clearances, bilateral traffic rights and commercial demand on the intended sectors. If realised, the hub strategy could reshape competitive dynamics on several long‑haul leisure and point‑to‑point markets, offering price‑sensitive travellers another option for direct or one‑stop travel between Asia and Europe.
For now, the June 26, 2025 (ET) launch date sets a clear milestone for the carrier’s return to London. The industry will watch closely to see how load factors, fares and onward connectivity perform in the opening weeks and how quickly additional services tied to the Bahrain base are rolled out.
